Hatzolah of Montreal said they received a terrifying call Wednesday morning. A woman reported that she and her husband had passed out, and she had just woken up, though her husband remained unconscious.
Hatzolah members rushed to the scene, and by the time they arrived, the woman had passed out again. As expected, it turned out that the couple was suffering from severe carbon monoxide poisoning.
Both patients are now baruch hashem doing much better and are expected to make a full recovery.
Fire officials found that the chimney for their home’s gas heating was blocked and was causing the release of deadly carbon monoxide gas directly into their home.
Later, the couple said that they had been feeling dizzy for several days and noticed that they were sleeping very deeply and waking up late.
Hatzolah is now warning families to be on the lookout for possible carbon monoxide poisoning. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas which is produced when burning gasoline, wood, propane, charcoal, and other types of fuel.
It is crucial that every home and apartment have a functioning carbon monoxide detector installed, in addition to a smoke detector, especially if you have a heating system or appliances that use gas or oil.
It is also very important to perform routine cleanings of the heating system. Most heating systems are recommended to be cleaned every two years.
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2 Responses
This is kind of weird because for decades heating systems have devices to cut off if their is backflow or CO present.
Was the vent blocked on the roof by snow or leaves?? Most modern gas furnaces use 4-5 inch PVC exhaust pipes that vent through the roof and the furnace itself would include a sensor to shut down the gas flow to the igniter if the carbon monoxide was not venting properly.